James clayton



N0. 6l2,639. Patented Oct. l8, I898. J. CLAYTON.

A U D l P H 0 N E (Application filed Dec. 8, 1896.\

(No Model.)

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES CLAYTON, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

AUDIPHONE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 612,639, dated October 18, 1898.

Application filed December 8, 1896. Serial No 614,868. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that LJAMEs CLAYTON, of the city of New York, (Brooklyn) in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Audiphones, of which the following is a specification.

I will first describe my invention with reference to the accompanying drawings and afterward point out its novelty in the claims.

Figure 1 in the accompanying drawings represents a central sectional view of one example of an audiphone embodying my invention and provided with a flexible ear-tube. Fig. 2 is a face View of the same with the flexible ear-tube omitted.

A is a conical disk,- opposite to the concave face of which is concentrically arranged the trumpet-month B of a sound-conducting tube 0, represented as a flexible ear-tube, the said trumpet-mouth having its concavity in the opposite direction to that of the disk and being so affixed to the disk, as by radial arms a a, that an annular opening Z) is left between the edges of said mouth and the face of the disk. In front of the central portion of the disk opposite the trumpet-mouth there is distended a diaphragm F of suitable material, as very thin steel, the edges of the said diaphragm being united with the disk A, so that the annular opening 1), before mentioned, is also between the diaphragm and the trumpetmouth.

The portion of the disk A which surrounds the trumpet-mouth B is, in the example of the invention represented by the drawings, corrugated in radial lines from the diaphragm to its own circumference. The said disk has a central opening, around which is a socket c, and to this socket is fitted a cap D. Between this cap and the back of the diaphragm is placed a light coil-spring E, which is made to press with more or less force on the diaphragm, according as the cap is adjusted on the socket toward or from the diaphragm.

The operation is as follows: The instrument is held by the listener with the concave face of the disk A toward the speaker or source of sound, and the end of the ear-tube is placed in his ear. The sound-waves striking the disk are gathered therein toward the center thereof and are thereby directed over the diaphragm and into the trumpet-mouth of the conducting or car tube, the vibrations of the diaphragm greatly assisting in the sound transmission. The adjustment of the cap D and the adjustment of the pressure of the spring upon the diaphragm thereby produced give the diaphragm greater or less tension and a more or less active vibration, which can be regulated as may be found desirable by the person using the instrument.

It has been found by careful and repeated experiments in the use of an instrument of this kind that as compared with a smooth conical disk the radially-corru gated disk is very much more effective.

I hat I claim as my invention is'- 1. In an audiphone, the combination of a conical disk, a flexible diaphragm distended in front of the central portion of the concave face of and having its edges attached to said disk, and an eartube having a trumpetmouth which is attached concentrically to said disk with its concavity in the opposite direction to the concavity of the disk and with an annular opening between its edges and the disk and diaphragm, substantially as herein described.

2. In an audiphone, the combination of a conical disk having a central opening, a flexible diaphragm distended in front of the concave face of and having its edges attached to said disk, an adjustable cap fitted to the central opening of the said disk behind the diaphragm, a spring located between the said cap and diaphragm for varying the tension of the diaphragm as the cap is adjusted, and an ear-tubehaving a trumpet-mouth attached to the said disk at the concave face thereof opposite to and spaced from the diaphragm, substantially as herein described.

JAMES CLAYTON. lVitnesses:

FEEDK. HAYNES, LIDA M. EoBEn'r. 

